Wood-cutting machine



3 Sheets- Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

A. L.- STANFORD.

Woon CUTTING MACHINE.

Patented Aug. 18

@will I 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

A.. LSTANPORD.

WOOD CUTTING MACHINE.

No. 324,603.v

Patented Aug. 18, 1885.

(No Model.) SSheets-Sheet 3,.

A. L. STANFORD.

Woon CUTTING MACHINE. No. 324,603; Patented Aug. 18, 1885.

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iran tarts armar rines@ ARTHUR L. STANFORD, OF FORT HILL, ILLINOIS.

WOOD-.CUTTING MACHINE..

` SPECIFICATION farming part of Letters Patent No. 324,603, dated August18, 1885.

(No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR L. STANFORD, a citizen of the United States,residing at Fort Hill, in the county of Lake and State of Illinois, haveinvented a new and Improved food-Cutting Machine; and I hereby declarethe following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the same.

My invention relates to a machine chieliy adapted for cutting green woodinto short lengths for fire-wood. My machine operates on a principlewhich, so far as I am aware, has never before been utilized for the sameor any analogous purpose. VThis principle consists in bending the timberat the point where it is to be severed, thus straining the fibers atthat point, and reducing greatly the lateral pressure on thecuttingtool, and then forcing down upon it the edge of the cutting tool.

To carry my invention into effect, I employ a massive frame to rest uponthe ground, provided with an adjustable beam at one end, under which thepole to be cut is slid over a roller; a beam at the opposite end, underwhich the end of the pole passes, this beam being pivoted at one of itsends to a corner of the frame, and preferably counterbalanced outsidethe pivotal point, whereby the tendency of the opposite end is to rise,unless otherwise acted on; ablock intermediate between the two beams,over which the pole is bent by forcing down the free end of the secondbeam; a knife above and a little to one side of the block, pivoted atone end to the edge of the frame, and preferably counterbalanced beyondthe pivotal point, whereby the tendency of the free end is to rise,unless otherwise acted on; and a system of friction` clutches and leversfor operating` the same, whereby when the pole is slid into position thefree end of the second. beam is forced downward to bend it over theblock, and the free end of the knife is likewise forced downward tosever it at the point of bending.

My invention consists in the general features above outlined, and alsoin certain details of construction and combinations of parts, all ashereinafter more fully set forth.

In the drawings, Figure l is a perspective View of my machine; Fig. 2, acentral longitudinal section of the same; Fig. 3, a side elevationshowing the construction at thereverse side of Fig. l; Fig. 4, anenlarggd detail View of the friction-clutch mechanism elnployed for theknife and bendingbeam; Fig. 5, a central section of one of the frictionclutches; Fig. 6, a similar view of al modification of the same, andFig. 7 a side elevation of the last. i

The friction-clutch mechanism referred to above is applicable to variouspurposes, and forms the subject of a separate application for a patent.

A is the frame, rectangular in form, and of either the constructionshown or of any other that will give it the requisite strength andstability. I commonly form it of four planks or timbers, tt t2, fittedtogether in the form of a rectangle, the timbers t being mortised to thetimbers t and t2, which project beyond the planks t at three corners ofthe frame, as shown at s. The timber t2 is made considerably lower thanthe others, to permit the bending down of the forward end of the polewhich is to be cut. A plank, r, is bolted to the under sides of thetimbers t', and extendsl across the center of the frame, projecting ateach end beyond the samc,andasecond plank, r', extends similarly acrossthe frame at the end adjacent to the timber t, projecting beyond theframe at one end, as shown. `The frame is mounted on legs to bring it asufy cient height above the ground for convenience to the operator, andthese legs are braced by crossepieces q. The side and end timbers,moreover, are braced bytie-rods p, extending through them and across theframe in both directions, and secured upon both sides of the timbers bynuts o. Across the top of the frame, above the plank r, is a heavytimber, n, to the upper side of which an iron block, m, is bolted. Atthe nearer' end of the frame aroller, Z, is attached by bearings securedto the timber t, near the upper edge of the same, to facilitate thepushing forward of the pole or sapling B which is to be cut.

Above the timber-t is an adjustable bearingbeam O, under which the poleB is slid, and which prevents the pole from flying upward when thefarther end. is bent down by the bendingbeam D. The beam Gis pivotedatits ICO end opposite theoperating-levers to aU -shaped bearing,E,which fits as ayoke upon the projecting end of the timber t, and isbolted thereto. At the other end it is connected to a friction-clutch,F, the friction-clutch being pivoted to abearing,k,secured to each sideofthe beam. The construction of this friction-clutch corresponds withthose which operate the bending-beam and knife. and will be fullydescribed farther on. The friction-clutch F slides on a metal bar, G,the lower end of which is provided with an eye and rests wit-hin amortise formed in the projecting end of the timber t. AU-shapedbeari1ig,E,fits upon and is bolted to this end of the timberalso, and the upper bolt passes through the eye of the bar G,'wherebythe said bar may vibrate as aiinverted pendulum.

The knife H is pivoted at its end opposite the operating-levers to abearing, E2, secured at its lower end to the projecting end of the plankr, and at its free end the knife moves within a guide, I, which may beconveniently formed of a U-shaped iron bar bolted to the tip of theframe, as shown, and which causes tl.e knife to descend close to theblock m.

The bending-beam D is pivoted at the end opposite the operating-leversto av U-shaped bearing, E3, which fits upon the projecting end of thetimber t2, and is bolted thereto. The beams C and D and the knife H areall counterbalanced by weights K,attached to extensions L at theirpivoted ends, whereby their opposite ends will tend upward of their ownaccord on being liberated.

It now remains to describe the mechanism by which the beam C is renderedadjustable to graduate the space intervening between itand the timbertaccording to the thickness of the pole to be passed through this space;also that by which the beam D is brought down upon the end of the poleto bend it over the block m and released at will, and also that by whichthe knife H is brought down upon the pole at the point of bending andreleased at will. The mechanism which opcrates the bending-beam and theknife are substantially identical, and therefore a description of theformer will serve for both.

Upon reference to Fig. lit will be seen that a bar, G', similar in allrespects to the bar G, already described, is pivoted at its lower endwithin a mortise formed in the projecting portion of the plank o",andextends up through a slot formed in the beam D near its end. Upon thisbar, below the beam, are two friction-clutches, the upper one, M, beingsuspended tothe beam by means of stirrups i, and the lower one, M',being pivoted at its center to the forked end k' of a lever, N. In thefork near the clutch is a cross-bar,-h, by which the lever is suspendedto the beam D through the medium of a rod, i.

The construction of the frictionclutches M and M is such that whenallowed to act normally they will readily slide downward 'upon the barG', but will resist any attempt to slide them upward. The upper clutch,M, constitutes what may be termed the retainingclutch, to hold the beamD down while the clutch M is being lowered for a fresh grip. Vithout theretaining-clutch the bent pole B would operate by its elasticity tothrow the beam upward whenever the pressure upon the lever N should berelaxed. The requisite conditions being established, however, as aboveoutlined, the carrying down of the bending-beam D becomes a simplematter, for it will readily be seen that a downward pressure upon thelever N causes it to press upward upon the clutch M, in which directionit cannot move, and through the medium of the rod i draws the beam Ddownward, and with it the clutch M,which, as explained, moves freely inthis direction. Upon relaxing pressure on the lever the retainingclutchcatches upon the bar, owing to the upward pressure of the bent pole B,and by raising the lever the clutch M is lowered for a fresh grip; henceit will be seen that by working the lever up and down the bendingbeam Dis brought down by intermittent stages. j

/Vhen the pole has been cut, it becomes necessary to raise the beam Dfor a fresh operation, and for this purposethe friction-clutches mustfor the time being be divested of their gripping` tendency. Mechanism isprovided whereby this is readily done, thus permilting thecounter-balance K to throw the beam upward to its normal posit-ion.

A detailed description of the forms of friction-clutch which I prefer toemploy, and also of the releasing mechanism just referred to, is asfollows: As before stated, however, this clutch forms the subject ofanother application for a patent, and hence itis not separately claimedin this application. Each clutch M M consists of a hollow rectangularbody having the inner surface of its end walls, g, beveled, whereby atthe bottom they are nearer thebar on which the clutch slides than at'thetop. Thus when the clutch is on the bar there is a space on each side ofit in the form of a truncated wedge. At each end of the interior of thehollow body a roller, O, is mounted on journalsf, projecting from theends of the rollers through slots e, formed in the side walls of thebody parallel with the inner surfaces of the end walls, g. Thus when thebar is passed through the opening d, formed centrally through the hollowbody of the clutch, it has a roller at each side of it, which,seeking'its lowest point through gravity, is normally in contact withboth the bar and the end wall g'adjacent to it. Hence the clutch is freeto move downward on the bar,` since any movement in this directioncauses the rollers to ascend in the wedgeshaped chamber, and thus relaxtheir pressure against the bar 5 but any attempt to move the clutchupward upon the bar causesthe rollers to descend in the wedge-shapedchamber and grip the bar, and it'is obvious that IOO IZO

the greater the upward pressure exerted upon the clutch the iirmer itshold will become.

The construction shown in Fig. is the simpler one; but in cases wherethe strain upon the clutch is considerable it can only be usedwith ahard-steel bar, since if the bar is of softer metal it is liable to beindented by the roller.

The modification shown in Figs. 6 and 7 provides for the use of asoft-metal bar, steel blocks P being interposed between the rollers Oand the bar. These blocks are less in height than the interior of thehollow body of the clutch, and are provided at their sides with pins f,passing through inclined slots c' in the body of the clutch. The purposeof thus mounting the blocks is to permit the operation of the releasingmechanism, about to be described, and for the same reason the rollers O,the inner surfaces of the walls g, and the sides ofthe blocks adjacentto the rollers are all fluted, and thus geared together.

. For a round bar the inner faces of the blocks may be curved.

Connected loosely to the journal f of the rollers O, or to the pinsf ofthe blocks P, when the modification shown in Figs.' 6 and 7 is employed,and on each side ot' the body of the clutch, is a V-shaped attachment,Q, composed of two bars, c, loosely pivoted togetherat their lower ends.The same rivet which forms this pivot connects to the V-shapedattachment Q. a forked lever, R, which passes around the end of theclutch, and is fulcrumed to it at the sides, as shown at b. Thus anydownward pressure upon the outer end of the lever R raises the V-shapedattachments Q, and hence the rollers or blocks, as the case may be,which are immediately connected to it. lf the form shown in Figs. 6 and7 be the one employed, the raising ofthe blocks turns the rollerseasily, by reason of the gear construction already described.

To press the ends of thelevers R down, when desired, by operating` fromthe end of the lever N, I employ the device comprising the bearing S,loosely suspended from thelever N,

near its outer end, hand-plate, T, extending from this bearing nearly tothe end ofthe lever, rod U, connecting the lower end of the bearing withthe lower arm of a bell-crank lever, V, which is pivoted at its fulcrumtoa fired bearing,S,on theleverN,near the clutch il' ,and has its upperarm resting on the end of the lever R of that clutch, and wire V,connecting the rod U with the end ofthe lever R of the clutch M, andpassing under the cross-piece h. When it is desired to release theclutch, it is only necessary to grasp the handplate T and press itagainst the lever. This throws the bearing S backward toward the end ofthe lever, pulling the rod U in the same direction, and thus bearing thelevers R down through the medium of the bell-crank lever V and wire V.

The knife H is operated, as before stated, by mechanism in all leadingparticulars identica-l with the foregoing, the friction-clutches beingmounted upon a bar, GZ, .pivoted at its lower end to the plank r, andbeing operated by a lever, N. If preferred, however, the knife may beoperated by a single clutch, ren` dering it more stable by having thetwo parts for attachment to it lower than the portion which comes intocontact with the wood to be cut. However, if the retaining-clutch bedispensed with, it is obvious that the counter balance K upon the knifemust be omitted and the knife lifted by hand, instead of automatically.

The end of the beam `G may easily be lowered, in opposition to thecounter-balance K, by simply moving the clutch F Vdownward upon the barG. To permit the sliding of this clutch upward to raise the beam, thelever R upon it must be pressed down, the construction of this clutchbeing7 as before stated, in all respects identical with those already described.

The under side of the bending-beam D is provided with teeth a, toprevent the wood B from rolling or sliding to one side when the beambears upon it in an inclined position.

The shape of the knife H is preferably curved, as shown, in order thatit shall have no tendency to slide the pole to one side in its descent,and shall perform, to some extent, a draw-cut.

The friction-clutches which I have described are applicable to allpurposes for which devices of that character are employed-such as forliftingejacks, stumpeXtractors, and the like. ln most otherapplications, however, the support for the clutches, corresponding withthe beam D, would be rigid and the bar movable. Therelea-sing of theclutches would then cause the bar to fall. All tnis is fully eX plainedin my application for a patent upon the friction-elutcli alone. On theother hand, while this form of clutch is peculiarly well adapted to mywood-cutting machine, it is not an essential requisite, since otherforms of clutch performing similar functions may be substituted for it.

The foregoing specification describes the mechanism which l prefer toemploy for carrying my invention into effect. It is obvious, however,that changes may be made in the various operative parts (other parts aswell as the clutches) without departing from the spirit of my invention.The essential features of the machine are a suitable supporting frame,mechanism for bending the wood at the point where it is to be cut, andmechanism for cutting it at the point of bending, and my claims areintended to comprehend this general construction irrespective of mattersof mere det-ail.

YVhat l claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

l. ln a machine for cutting wood, the combination, with asupporting-frame provided with a bearing over which the wood is to bebent at the point where it is to be cut,` of a beam toward oneend of thefra-me, under which IOO the wood is passed, a vertically-movable beamtoward the opposite end of the frame for bending the wood down over thebearing, a vertically-movable knife close to the bearing, and mechanismfor operating both the bendingbeam and knife, all substantially asdescribed.

2. In a machine for cutting green wood, thc combination of the followingelements: a supporting-frame, a beam at one end of the frame, underwhich thewood is passed, a block intermediate between the ends of theframe,over which the wood is passed, a beam crossing the other end ofthe frame, under which beam also the wood passes, said beam beingpivoted at one end to the frame, whereby by pressing down its oppositeend the Wood is bent over the block, a knife crossing the frame near theblock, under which knife also the wood passes,

said knife being pivoted at one end to the frame, whereby the forcingdown of its opposite end causes it to cut the pole at the point ofbending, and mechanism for forcing down the free ends of the bendingbeamand knife, all substantially as described.

3. In a machine for cutting green wood, the combination of the frame A,adjustable beam C, block m, bending-beam D, pivotally connected at oneend to a corner of the frame, and provided with a counter-balance, L K,bar G, pivoted at its lower end to a bearing attached to the frame andpassing through a mortise in the bending-beam, friction-clutch M on thebar G', connected to the beam D, friction-clutch M on the bar G', belowthe clutch M, lever N, connected at its end to the clutch M, rod 1",connecting the lever N with the beam D, mechanism for releasing theclutches M and M, whereby they may be moved upward on the bar, knife H,pivotally connected to one side of the frame, and clutch mechanism forforcing down the opposite end of the knife, all substantially asdescribed.

ARTHUR L. STANFORD.

In presence of- ELIJAH STANFORD, J osEPH D. PLONIEN.

